TRAINING DAY: Groups take various approaches to combating worker shortage

Construction groups at the forefront of combating Wisconsin’s labor shortage are seeing little sign of it letting up.

But by being so protracted, the predicament has at least done this for industry groups: It has given them time to adapt and experiment to meet the needs of contractors who are struggling to find the next generation of talent in the industry.

Construction-related organizations have responded to the situation in various ways.

The Wisconsin Laborers, for instance, this summer completed a large expansion of their training center in DeForest. Separately, the Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership’s Big Step program  a year ago opened a new office in Racine and has since taken steps meant to help people overcome obstacles and stay in training programs. And the Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin is selling out a recently launched series of classes meant to impart leadership and help workers step into jobs with more responsibility.

Matt Waltz, chief operating officer at WRTP/Big Step, said the emergence of a seemingly intractable labor shortage has pushed his group to become more aggressive about both recruiting people into its programs and knocking down barriers that might have previously prevented people from entering a union apprenticeship program.

And despite recent concerns over a coming economic downturn, the existing backlog of work will keep crews busy for years, Waltz said. One example of why this is true can be found in Racine, where WRTP/Big Step opened an office in spring of 2018. One big impetus for that step was Foxconn Technology Group’s plans to build a massive factory nearby in Mount Pleasant. Even as some of Foxconn’s plans have come into doubt, the flurry of construction in Racine and nearby places has shown no sign of abating.

“Whether Foxconn builds their 20 million-square-foot facility or not, there’s so much opportunity there that didn’t exist a year ago,” Waltz said.

The move to Racine County hasn’t necessarily been easy, however. Waltz said it has taken a great deal of effort to spread word about the program in Racine — a city that has historically seen higher unemployment than much of the state. To promote their work, Big Step officials have taken out radio ads, met with public officials and even hung fliers on doorknobs.

The approach differs in many ways from what the group has done in more populous cities like Madison and Milwaukee, where Big Step already has offices. In Racine, for one, the group has put quite a bit of thought into how it can break down barriers that might keep people from joining a training program. In a tight labor market, Waltz said, workers can be tempted to take a low-paying job at a retailer rather than train for a career that can pay off in the long run.

To combat that temptation, the group now makes it a priority to reach out to high school kids and try to interest them in construction. A program for sophomores puts students through a training program that can earn them a certificate recognized broadly throughout the union trades.

The Wisconsin Laborers’ District Council meanwhile is also investing heavily in its training programs.

The group recently doubled its classroom space in an expansion of its training center in DeForest. The Laborers have recently seen a steady increase in attendance in its training programs and, last year, put 3,000 workers through classes at the center — an all-time high, said Steve Kwaterski, director of communications for the organization.

“It’s been a very good upward trend,” he said.

But the shortage of workers also means there’s a shortage of industry leaders, especially as more and more people in the construction industry reach retirement age.

The Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin, a trade group that represents mostly non-union companies, responded four years ago by starting a program that sought to teach workers how to be leaders. The group has since begun offering training for project coordinators, often employees at construction companies who are specifically selected for such positions, said Wayne Belanger, director of education at the ABC.

Belanger said the Great Recession in 2008 caused many leaders in the construction industry to retire early, exiting the industry for good. That left behind few people who could help new workers throughout their careers.

“This is a time that’s definitely a crisis for the industry,” Belanger said. “The other new generation coming up, they don’t necessarily have the support.”

ABC’s training arm started about four years ago its first series of training sessions meant to teach new workers what they need to know to thrive in the industry, how to lead a crew of workers and other things related to management. Last year, the group’s construction leader class was in such high demand that ABC had to keep adding sections.

“We’ve got to have programs for this,” Belanger said. “The Millennials may be all excited they have a brand new job. But if you haven’t used tools before, and your supervisor expects you to, it’s a total disconnect. So what you’re trying to do is make that connection.” Follow @natebeck9